Rail-joint



(No Model.)

B. R. 000K.

RAIL JOINT. .No. 459,996. Patented Sept. 22, 1891.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BARNEY R. COOK, OF EDINBURG, ILLINOIS.

RAIL-JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 459,996, dated September 22, 1891.

Application filed April 24, 1891- Serial No, 390,295. (No model.) i

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BARNEY R. COOK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Edinburg, in the county of Christian and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail-Joints; and I do hereby declare the following to bea full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in rail-joints; and it consists in certain details of construction and arrangement, which I will fully describe in the following specification and point out in the claim.

The object of my invention is to provide a reliably-efficient joint or connection between the ends of the rails of the track.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved rail-joint. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on a line with the securing-bolts. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the inner face of one of the fish-plates.

Briefly stated, my invention consists in providin g fish-plates formed with inwardly-pointing lips adapted to engage with slots in the inner ends of the rails to draw the said rails together when the securing-bolts are screwed home.

Referring in detail to the several parts by letter, A is the fish-plate, provided with the inwardly-reaching tongues a a, which may be stamped or struck up from said plate. The inner ends of the track-rails are provided on either side with the vertical slots B B, so placed and formed that they will be engaged by the inner ends of the tongues aa when the fishplate is placed in position. It will be seen that by drawing the fish-plates snugly home against the rails by the securing-bolts the inner and free ends of the tongues will each engage a slot B in the rails, and as the nuts on the bolts are tightened will draw the ends of the rails together and so hold them until the bolts are withdrawn. The strain of holding the'fish-plates in position will have a tendency to lock the nuts upon the bolts, as the nuts are acting against the tension of the spring-like tongues.

It will be seen that I have produced asimple, cheap, and very efficient rail-joint, and, believing that the construction and advanages will be readily appa ent from the foregoing, further description is deemed unnecessary.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,

A rail-joint having the fish-plates provided with inwardly-reaching tongues, the inner ends of which are adapted to engage with slots or openings formed in the web of the ends of the track-rails in such a manner that the meeting ends of said rails will be drawn together when the fish-plates are secured in position, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

BARNEY R. COOK.

Witnesses:

Tnos. A. PIERCE, JACOB WILLHITs. 

